BUAN

Dr T M Bafitlhile

Geospatial Data Scientist

Faculty of Agriculture
Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering(ABE)

Private Bag 0027 Gaborone
+267 3650100
tbaitlhile@buan.ac.bw

Geospatial Data Scientist (Hydrology, Climatology and Ecology) Holding Phd in Geographical Information Science and Cartography, MEng in Hydrology & Water Resource Engineering, and BSc in Soil & Water Conservation Engineering

Specialisation

geospatial science
hydrological processes,
landoceanatmosphere interactions,
and hydro-climate variability

Interests in teaching

geospatial science,
hydrology,
climatology,
water resources,
irrigation systems.

Simulation of streamflow and flood forecasting using machine learning techniques across contrasting hydroclimatic regimes, including humid, semihumid, and semi-arid basins. Application of datadriven hydrological models to enhance flood prediction and risk assessment.
Coupling between surface temperature variability and oceanic– atmospheric circulation systems, and their role in modulating regional climate dynamics.
Assessment of precipitation and temperature-driven vegetation greening over the Tibetan Plateau, highlighting climate controls on high-altitude ecosystems.

Distinct Regional Drivers of Summer Precipitation over the Tibetan Plateau: The Roles of ENSO, PDO, and AMO Classification of Botswana sorghum seed varieties using machine learning high-altitude ecosystems.

Publications

• Wang, R, Liu Y., Zhu, L., Bafitlhile, T. M., Wang, R., & Liu, Y., Tibetan lake change linked to large-scale atmospheric oscillations via hydroclimatic trajectory. Science of the Total Environment. Vol 951, 15 November 2024, 175465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175465.

• Bafitlhile, T. M. & Liu, Y., Temperature contributes more than precipitation to the greening of the Tibetan Plateau during 1982–2019. Theoretical and Applied Climatology. 147, 1471-1488 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-021-03882-9.

• Bafitlhile, T. M. & Liu, Y., An asymmetric relationship between Tibetan Plateau surface temperature regimes and oceanic-atmospheric circulations. International Journal of Climatology. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.8179.

• Bafitlhile, T. M. & Li, Zhijia., Applicability of ?Support Vector Machine and Artificial Neural Network for Flood Forecasting in Humid, SemiHumid and Semi-Arid Basins in China (2019). https://doi.org/10.3390/w11010085.

• Bafitlhile, T. M., Li, Z., & Li, Q. (2018). Comparison of Levenberg Marquardt and Conjugate Gradient Descent Optimization Methods for Simulation of Streamflow Using Artificial Neural Network. Advances in Ecology and Environmental Research, 3(2517–9454), 217–237. http://www.sspub.org/journals/aeer/vol-3/vol-3-issue-11- november-2018/

Oladele, A. S., Fagbamigbe, A. F., & Bafitlhile, T. M. (2016), Modelling Climate Change Effects on Sustainable Transport Facilities through Time Series and Rainfall Trend Analysis of Palapye – Botswana. Proceedings of the 6th IASTED International Conference on Modelling and Simulation (AfricaMS 2016), 172–178. ACTA Press. https://doi.org/10.2316/P.2016.838-028.

• Bafitlhile, T. M., & Oladele, A. S. (2015). Modeling Extreme Flood Events for Palapye, Botswana. BIE Journal of Engineering and Applied Science, 6(1), 54– 60

• Bafitlhile, T. M. & Liu, Y., Inter-annual regime of summer precipitation with teleconnection from 1982 to 2019 over the Tibetan Plateau: Role of westerly jets. Environmental Research Letters. (2026). (Under Review).